Cucumber Snail Deterrent

Slugs and snails, in their short lifespan, can produce up to 60,000 progeny.  That’s a lot of slippery little slitherers heading for your lettuce!

Snails in particular have great homing instincts, so if you throw them over the fence onto the street or into your neighbour’s garden (not recommended for neighbourly bonding), providing they are not eaten or hurt, they can find their way back.

Keeping them out of the garden is an ongoing mission, try this natural method to deter them.

Cucumber Snail Deterrent

If you have been saving your old deodorant tins this is a great way to use them. Or you can use tin foil made into a little dish or a small pie tin etc.

If you have an regular cucumber that you have to peel to eat this is a good way to use the peelings and ends. Place a few cucumber slices or pieces of peel in a small aluminium tin/dish/foil and put in your garden at regular intervals under the plants that slugs and snail like the best.

Cucumbers (in particular the skins) skins contain curbitacinm and when that chemical comes into contact with aluminium it causes a reaction, creating a scent that’s undetectable to humans, but drives slugs and snails crazy causing them to flee the area.

You’ll need to replace the cucmumber every so often, when it’s shrivelled up and or gone mushy, put some fresh peel and slices in the tins/foil.

Unfortunately this method does not work very well if you have a Spoodle that loves cucumber and has free access to the garden! Cruz ate all of mine about half an hour after I put them down.